Pakistanis may say whatever they want, the fact is that they were running themselves into a pit. Pak didn't open the air space as a gesture of goodwill, but because of economic losses.
Business Today Report:
The Pakistan airspace that was closed following the tensions between India and its neighbour after the Pulwama suicide bombing led to heavy losses. The closure of the airspace affected nearly 400 flights a day and resulted in nearly a loss of $100 million (Rs 688 crore) for Islamabad. An extensive study of operations by Pakistani and foreign carriers between February and late June showed that approximately 400 flights a day were impacted by the closure. It also led to an increase in flight times as planes had to bypass Pakistani airspace. The closure, hence, resulted in increased fuel expenses, operational costs and maintenance costs as well as higher duty hours for the aircrew.
India Today Report : What made Pakistan open its airspace for India
Pakistan hits air pocket
Much has been written about the Indian civil aviation sector losing money due to the closure of the Pakistani airspace. The same day when Pakistan's aviation secretary put a precondition for withdrawing the ban on Indian use of the airspace, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri told Parliament that India spent an extra Rs 430 crore due to route diversion.
Indian flights were forced to take a longer route to avoid Pakistan airspace. Earlier on July 3, Puri had told the Rajya Sabha that total loss caused by the closure of Pakistani airspace was about Rs 550 crore (Rs 491 crore to Air India, Rs 30.73 crore to SpiceJet, Rs 25.1 crore to IndiGo and Rs 2.1 crore to GoAir).
But loss of revenue was far greater for a fragile economy like Pakistan. Operations of around 400 flights a day were affected due to closure of airspace by Pakistan, which meant loss of almost $100 million or nearly Pakistan Rs 16 billion [Rs 6.85 billion].
Pakistan earns good money from route navigation and airport charges levied on flights using its airspace or landing for maintenance or refueling. These charges vary according to the size and class of aircraft.
For a regular Boeing 737 passenger aircraft, Pakistan charges around $600-$700 a day for allowing use of its airspace for terminal navigation and landing. For about 400 flights using its airspace, Pakistan could be earning around $3,00,000 a day.
Besides, Pakistan's aviation sector has a high demand for destinations in South and Southeast Asia. Some reports suggest that Pakistan International Airlines suffered more than $450,000 a day due to closure of Indian airspace for its use as flights to places like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok were suspended. An available longer route made PIA flights unviable. The combined loss of the PIA and CAA was estimated to be $100 million
Sources : Pakistani airspace closure after Balakot strike cost Islamabad Rs 688 crore
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